How to start a Podcast: A beginner’s guide

You’ve been wondering about it for a while and decided that now is the time to start your own podcast! But… Where do you start? What equipment do you need? And how do you get it online?

Follow these 10 easy steps to get your podcast off your head and onto the online platforms!

Ask yourself these questions:

1. What will I talk about?

   Find a topic that you’re interested in and ask yourself if you can do a podcast in the long run and still be passionate about it. Podcast takes time and commitment, so you want to be sure that you enjoy it every step of the way! Make sure that you also have a unique point of view on the matter that you want to cover.

2. Can I talk about this topic for more than 10 episodes?

   Longevity and consistency are key elements in a podcast’s success. Unless you’re planning on doing scripted limited series, I would recommend that you think about your podcast as a versatile living and breathing creature. Write a list of 25 possible episode titles on the topic that you would like to talk about, as well as possible guests. This simple exercise will help you plan for the long run and discard any ideas that won’t fit in your plan.

3. Who will I be talking to?

   Defining your avatar audience or your ideal listener, is also a KEY element in podcasting! This is what people refer to when they say that you need to find your ‘niche’. How are you supposed to grow a following if you don’t know who you’re talking to? Be specific, particularly about the demographics:

   • What is the gender of your audience?

   • How old are they? (You’ll be talking differently to Baby Boomers than to Millennials and Gen Zs)

   • What interests do they have? (Are they into sports? Do they LOVE arts?)

   • Do they have a beginner’s or advanced knowledge of the topic? (This will help you define your narrative, know if you need to ‘geek out’ or simplify your message)

     Take the time to ask people in your circle and beyond their habits and if they would listen to a show about X, Y or Z.

4. How do I record a Podcast?

   You can spend $0 to get started.

   • Podcasts of one person: make sure that you use an external microphone and headphones for a more refined sound.

     • Recording using your Phone and Tablet: Voice notes app or any voice memo app that comes built-in on the device.

     • Recording using your Computer:

       • Windows users - Free: Audacity, Zoom, OBS

       • Mac users - Quick-time Player and GarageBand, OBS and Zoom.

       • Keep watching this space as I’ll soon write a blog post about the best Podcasting microphones around. If you already have a microphone (even if it’s a USB microphone), check out this article on how to improve your audio quality!

5. How do I record guests?

   Virtual call software like Zoom, Skype, Zencastr, or Google Meet work great and are free to use! Before you hit ‘Record’, make sure that both parties use external microphones and headphones to reduce echo and if you’d like me and love checklists, here’s one on best practices.

6. How often should I release podcast episodes?

   Great question! Weekly episodes under 20 minutes tend to perform best, but the one question that you need to ask yourself first is: how much time can I dedicate to this project?

   Consistency and showing up to your audience with constant value will bring more results than having the best microphone in the world! You can record weekly episodes, or record in bulk, using this Batching Technique.

7. Where can I host my Podcast?

   You have free and very affordable options available all over the internet:

   • For the free option you can go with Anchor FM, which is a great app to start with! It comes with a bunch of free features like livestreaming, and simple editing tools. It also enables you to host a show with friends through the app directly!

   • For options that start at $7 a month, you can look at Spreaker, PodBean, Buzzsprout and Libsyn. All of them have pros and cons (maybe another article in the making about this will come soon!) but my favorite is Spreaker, because it’s really easy to use and it’s a one-stop-shop to send your podcast feed to all the major podcast platforms available out there. It also has audience stats and monetization options available.

8. To edit…or not to edit?

   I am a personal fan of using light editing, and accepting your mistakes. As human beings we tend to be very permissive if we know we can perfect something after the fact! Why would you spend HOURS editing yourself if you embrace the challenge and do your best to get it right (or closest to right) the first time? You’ll never avoid the ‘ehmms’ and ‘ahmms’ completely. You can reduce post-production time by rehearsing your questions, taking your time to answer and never rush into anything. 

   Also, it’s ok to not know an answer. You can simply say “I’m actually not sure about the answer to that but I will find out and include it in the show notes/blog post/post”. That allows you to plug your website!

   The only time that I do advocate for editing though, is of course, if someone went on a tangent, someone’s dog went on a barking ‘spree’ or if there were some connection issues.

   Regarding free software: Windows users can use Audacity and Mac users GarageBand. For paid software Adobe Audition is my favorite editing software.

9. What should I include in my intro? Or should I even have music at all?

   If you choose to do one, I beg you: don’t go over the 45-second mark. Why? Think about the amount of times people will listen to that intro: (hint) A LOT! There’s nothing more awful than a rambling intro to get me discouraged to listen to a show- as a listener, I want to get right to it!!

   Your intro should include:

   1. Your name

   2. Your podcast’s name

   3. What the mission of the podcast is

   4. What people can expect from each episode and

   5. How often it will be

   I’ve heard amazing podcasts where they actually have no intro at all. Why did it work? Because it was in line with the concept/ mission of the podcast. Their podcast was under 5 minutes and was about sharing raw, thought-provoking takeaways that would leave the person tinkering for the day.

10. How do I structure my podcast?

    There’s a lot to consider, but just like anything, it must have a beginning, middle and an end. There are a lot of ways to structure your podcast, but if it’s an interview based podcast (as most are), here is how you organize it:

    Intro Music or Jingle

    Podcaster Introduction:

    - Hi welcome to ...... 

    -I'm your host.......

    -Thank you for joining me today! 

    -Today I'm going to be talking to/ about (really catchy information that they need to know). 

    Example: "Today we're covering everything that you need to know about financing so that you don't end up backpedaling on a deal because you didn't calculate all the property tax. With me is Johanna Houston, a finance consultant. 

    Structure: what you're talking about + WHY your audience should know about this

    (All the above should be less than 3/5 minutes)

    Middle section of the show:

    -introducing topic, or guest 

    For bios don't give the audience more than 3 things about your guest, otherwise they will be overwhelmed with facts and you're at risk that they kind of doze off if it's too long.

    For a topic, start with information that relates to the audience, like a statistic or something that happened on the news, or alternatively, if it was requested by your audience. In short, humanize the topic and make it relatable to them.

    -Start with a strong question 

    Never be afraid to ask anything, even if it's uncomfortable. Let your guest be the judge of something being 'too much to ask'

    -LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN. 

    Even if you have some good questions, but you're curious about what your guest said, feel free to let the conversation guide the interview, not your bullet points (it will flow more like a conversation)

    -Start wrapping up your conversation 7 minutes before the actual time to close the interview so that you can ask "Is there anything else that we didn't talk about that you'd like to let the audience know about?"

    End section of the show:

    -Well, I guess this is the end of this podcast (recap the top learning information in a succinct way) - THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO MAKE PROMOS later

    Remember to add a CALL TO ACTION:

    -To learn more about me/ this podcast please visit YOUR WEBSITE and drop me a message 

    
    -Thank you for joining me this week, I will be back next week with more information about.....(if you know, tease the topic)

    Outro music/ Jingle.

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